Jesse Taylor Out Of UFC Fight Night 121

A potential USADA violation has forced Jesse Taylor out of  UFC Fight Night 121 event.

Taylor had been notified of the potential violation, which resulted from an out-of-competition sample collected on Aug. 22. No other details were given.

From USADA:

“USADA, the independent administrator of the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, will handle the results management and appropriate adjudication of this case involving Taylor. Under the UFC Anti-Doping Policy, there is a full and fair legal process that is afforded to all athletes before any sanctions are imposed. Additional information will be provided at the appropriate time as the process moves forward.”

Taylor was slated to fight Belal Muhammad  at the event. A replacement opponent is being sought.

UFC Fight Night 121 takes place Nov. 19 (but airs in the U.S. on Nov. 18 due to the time difference) at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. It’s expected to air on FS1 following early prelims, though the full fight card and bout order haven’t been finalized.

Taylor had completed one of the more long-term comebacks in UFC history when he submitted Dhiego Lima in the second round to win Season 25 of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Taylor was a finalist on Season 7 of the show, but a drunken meltdown caught on camera forced UFC President Dana White to remove him from the finale against eventual winner Amir Sadollah, and would have C.B. Dollaway replace him.

Taylor would only have one fight in the UFC in 2008, a loss to the aforementioned Dollaway, then would fight for  Strikeforce, WSOF, Cage Warriors and DREAM.

Following the “TUF 25” championship, he talked about the comeback.

“Maybe they’ll make a movie about it one day,” Taylor said at the time. “It’s not about the money. Don’t get me wrong – it’s going to change my life and my kids’ life. But it wasn’t really about the money. It was about the story. About redemption. That’s what it was about. I just wanted to show my kids, to be a good role model. Like, ‘Hey, you mess up in life, but you fix it, and you keep going.’ A lot of people mess up in life. I think I relate with people in that sense. I’m a pretty regular guy. Nothing too special about me. I just keep going.”

 

The latest UFC Fight Night 121 card now includes:

Mark Hunt vs. Marcin Tybura

 

Joanne Calderwood vs. Bec Rawlings

 

Belal Muhammad vs. TBA

 

Jeremy Kennedy vs. Alex Volkanovski

 

Daniel Kelly vs. Elias Theodorou

 

Rashad Coulter vs. Tai Tuivasa

 

Ryan Benoit vs. Ashkan Mokhtarian

 

Alex Chambers vs. Nadia Kassem